Finally a Family
by JessikaSoleil
Summary: Brian's friend begins to tease him about not having a "real" family. How long can he hold out without a father? Dr. Mike, Sully, Brian, Colleen, and Matthew are all hold a central role, but their names are slightly changed and the time is present day! You will easily know who is who.
1. Chapter 1 - The Bet

**A/N: This is my first fanfic that I am posting on here! I have been reading amazing writing from this site for years, and now I am finally joining in. This is a Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman story set in the present day. It explores Brian's feelings about losing his mom and Mike and Sully's relationship in a modern day setting. Names are slightly changed, but you can easily distinguish who is who.**

**-Jess =)**

Meadows Elementary School was bustling with activity on Thursday, April 11. Spring sports had started and all of the students were anticipating the weekend.

"Who can tell me what twelve times twelve is?" asked third grade teacher Mrs. Campbell. Eight year old Brian Turner's hand shot up as soon as his teacher spoke these words. Unlike most young children, he loved school, learning, and being the teacher's pet.

"Brian, please tell us", said Mrs. Campbell.

"One hundred forty four", Brian responded without hesitation.

Mrs. Campbell smiled, "Excellent, Brian. Now, class, we are finished with mathematics. We will now be moving on to our Open House projects. For those who are new to Meadows Elementary, Open House is a time when all of your parents tour our classroom. All of your projects will be displayed for them to view, so we need to get started."  
Brian squirmed in his seat. Third grade was almost over and has turned out to be a blast! New friends to play with, an extremely mothering teacher, and now he was going to create a project that his family was going to love! The whole thing was more than exciting in his innocent eyes.

"This year's Open House project is called the family chain." Mrs. Campbell motioned to the table in the front of the room. "Here are some cutouts of people for you to use. There is a man, a woman, a boy, and a girl. Some of you may want to include your pets, so I've also supplied a dog, a cat, a rabbit, and a fish."

Brian beamed as he looked around at his friends, who also seemed jovial about this assignment. Everyone in the class stood up and scurried to the front of the room to pick up their cutouts. When it was Brian's turn, he chose a woman, two boys, one girl, and one dog. This was his family and he could not stop a proud smile from spreading across his lips. Suddenly, one of Brian's "friends", Stephen, came up behind him and started to tease him.

"So when's your mom getting married, Brian? Bet you won't have a dad by Father's Day."

Some of the nearby students snickered. Brian froze. He could not understand why his friend would say something like this, but he wasn't raised to back down from a threat. He felt like crying and punching Stephen at the same time. Fighting off tears that welled up in his eyes, he said,

"I bet I will, and you can count on that."


	2. Chapter 2- Baseball Blues

"Crack!" the sound of a wooden bat against a baseball could be heard for miles. As the batter sprinted to first base, the spectators roared in delight for the home team. What's this? The ball has rolled past the centerfielder! Pint-sized Brian dashed around the bases as fast as his legs could carry him. The weekend had finally arrived, and Brian had almost forgotten about Stephen's hurtful words a day earlier. Mika, Brian's mother, his brother Matthias, and his sister Corinne were all present in the stands, cheering him on at his first game of the season. Mika's boyfriend, Adrian (everyone called him by his last name, Surrey) was also there for support. Brian's mother was overjoyed as her son rounded the bases and stomped both feet on home plate; she had never seen her son run so fast in his life, and she had certainly never seen such an elated smile on his face. She almost ran down to the field in jubilation, but Surrey quickly pulled her back to the bleachers. Brian, who was already sitting in the dugout, witnessed this and mouthed "thank you" to him, and flashed his toothy grin towards his family. As Brian's team congratulated him in a huddle, Coach Johnson patted him on the shoulder and laughingly said:

"What a way to start us off, Brian! What more could the team ask for?"

As the coach walked away to cheer on the next batter, Brian couldn't help beaming with pride.

"I have the best life", he thought innocently to himself. "What more could I want?"

He looked behind him and saw all of his friends' mothers and fathers in the stands, embracing and yelling their child's name encouragingly. Suddenly, he recalled Stephen's cutting words and his heart began to feel tense. Brian's delight suddenly turned into self pity, a trait he rarely expressed.

"A dad", he said, a little louder than he should have. "That's what I want".

Coach Johnson turned to face Brian.

"What's that you say, son? Is something the matter, Brian?"

"No, coach, nothing's wrong", Brian dishonestly affirmed. "LETS GO, WOLVES", he shouted at the top of his lungs.


	3. Chapter 3 - Dinner for Five

Two hours later, the suspenseful little league game had come to an end, with the first victory of the season belonging to the Wolves. The Bears and the Wolves high-fived each other, both pleased that the exhausting competition was over. Brian beamed as he flew up the bleacher stairs where his family was anxiously waiting for him. He jumped into his mother's arms first.

"Brian, excellent job! Your team must be very proud of you", exclaimed Mika.

"And so are we", said Surrey reassuringly as Brian ran to give him a hug.

"Nice going, little brother!" added Matthias. Brian was so ecstatic about the game that he even embraced his big brother.

"Great job", Corinne said in her usual motherly tone.

Brian could not have felt better than he did at that moment; everyone he loved surrounded him and he knew that he was loved. After all, everyone had dropped what they were doing to attend his first game.

When the hugs and congratulations were finished, Brian realized that he was famished from working up a sweat batting and fielding.

"I am starving; can we please get something to eat?"

Everyone laughed.

"Of course, Brian", said his mother. "Let's all go and have a nice home cooked meal."

"Who's cooking?" asked Brian. Secretly, he hoped that it was not his mom. She tried, but she was about as far from a chef as the moon was from the Earth.

"I will, and I'll even make your favorite; chicken and rice", Corinne jumped in before anyone could object. They all walked to the parking lot, pleased with the events of the day so far.

"Can I drive home?" asked Corinne innocently.

"Nice try, but you've got two more months to go before you get your permit", Mika asserted.

Surrey pulled into the driveway of a quaint Colorado home. Everyone piled out of the car, anxious for food and not bothering to take in the beautiful afternoon sunshine. Yellow streaks of light lit up everything as if it was Christmas time. Every type of flower imaginable could be found in their three acre yard; lilies, roses, chrysanthemums, tulips, you name it. A chorus of birds chirped in delight to complete the surreal spring day. Corinne, Matthias, and Brian rushed inside while Mika and Surrey stayed behind to talk. First, they embraced and just stayed in a trance-like state, in awe of their surroundings.

"That was some game, wasn't it?" Mika said.

"Yeah. But I wasn't watching Brian. I was looking at you", Surrey replied. Mika was touched by the comment, but she didn't let on. Surrey tried to kiss her, but she turned away.

"We'd better check up on the children", she said as she turned and began to walk towards the house. Surrey stayed where he was, wondering what he could have done wrong.

"Dinner is served!" Corinne gloated. The group had arrived home forty minutes earlier, and now a feast was laid out on the table, complete with roast chicken, wild rice, corn on the cob, and all kinds of non-alcoholic beverages. Corinne summoned everyone to sit down. Brian was the first one to arrive, his stomach still growling recklessly, trailed by Matthias, Mika, and finally Surrey.

"Wow, thanks Corinne! This is great; all of my favorites!" Brian joyfully exclaimed.

"What a wonderful job! I wish I could say I taught you everything you know", Mika said. She didn't mean to bring up a sore topic, but the children's mother, Carlotta, was somehow alluded to in that statement. She had died of a stroke about a year ago and, as their godmother, 34-year old Mika graciously took in the orphans. Their father had left long ago, and never came back for the funeral. Nevertheless, the children were strong, healthy, faith filled, and resilient, just like their mother.

"My mother taught me how to cook", explained Corinne. Trying to lighten the mood, she said, "But you've taught me many other things, too, Mika, like how to perform first aid, ski, and take care of a dog". She motioned to the family's malamute puppy, Lulu, who jumped up and licked Corinne in the face. Corinne smiled.

Matthias fiddled uncomfortably in his seat. He missed his mom, but Mika had done a great job raising his younger siblings. At almost seventeen, he could not think of a single thing Mika had taught him.

"Yeah, and you helped me learn to read big words!" Brian added excitedly. "But I've been thinkin' I could really use a dad. Ya know, to teach me about being a man. Last night I heard you and Surrey talkin' and I thought I heard you two say you loved each other."

Matthias and Corinne stifled their laughter, but secretly they longed for the same thing.

"Well, I suppose I was not the best teacher of grammar, Brian. And I understand it has been hard for you, living without a father, but Surrey does many things with you. In fact, wasn't he the one who convinced you to join the baseball team?"  
"Yes, ma. But if you two love each other, why don't ya get _married_?"

By this point, Mika was boiling in humiliation. Sure, she had thought of the idea, but she just wasn't ready. She tried to put herself in Brian's shoes. He had never been so insistent on this topic, although he had brought it up before.

"Well, that is a possibility, Brian. But, we both must agree on marrying each other, you know."

Surrey sat uncomfortably in silence. He had entertained the notion, but he kept telling himself that he was not ready to forget and stop mourning his previous wife, who had died during childbirth. Faithfully, he had visited her grave every day, and was not ready to quit. The truth was, he did love Mika, and he never imagined that he would love like this again, which frightened even his audacious soul. He spoke:

"Brian, we both love each other, but your mom's right. Marriage is a commitment, and we need time to make sure we are both ready."

Brian hung his head in disappointment. He did not want to tell his family about Stephen's bet for fear that it would complicate things even more. Mika had never yelled at him before, but he was afraid that she would if she heard this. With the whole table staring at him, it seemed there was no way out. No one knew the internal struggle he was facing, and, fearful that he would spill the beans, left the table in a huff and darted up the stairs to his room. Once there, he buried his face in a pillow that once belonged to his real ma, Carlotta.

"Why did you have to go?" he demanded through sobs. "You would know what to do".

Meanwhile, the rest of the family sat in the dining room, astonished.

"He's never been like this before", stated Mika.

"I know my little brother", Matthias added. "He would never get this upset unless he had a good reason."

"Maybe school is giving him stress", suggested Corinne.

"He's in the third grade. What could be that stressful?" said Matthias.

"I'd better go talk to him; my words made him upset", Surrey said, ashamedly. He understood what the little guy was feeling, having lost his own father at age ten. Maybe he could talk some sense into Brian.

"Thank you, but that's my job, now. I will call you if I need your help." Mika affirmed.

Surrey let out a sarcastic chuckle. "I'm sure you will." He knew that Mika rarely let people help her and always wanted to be the sole problem solver.


	4. Chapter 4 - A Mother's Love

For the first time in her life, Mika Woods was legitimately afraid. She had had to comfort the children before, even Matthias, but this time was different; she was still new at being a mother of a young child. Brian was a happy-go-lucky child and never backed down when helping others was involved; he had his mother's heart. Now was a time when he was the one that needed help, and she had no idea how he would respond. As she plodded up the stairs, she thought about Carlotta, wondering how Brian's biological mother would react to this situation.

"Please help me, God", she prayed under her breath.

Before she reached the door of Brian's bedroom, Mika could hear stifled sobs.

"This is too much", she thought to herself, and almost turned around. Instead, she confidently opened the door, without making a sound, and went to join Brian on his bed, pulling him off of his pillow in a gentle embrace. A flashback of her mother rocking her as a child entered her thoughts, so Mika began to rock Brian back and forth until his tears ceased. She handed him a tissue box that was conveniently resting on a nearby dresser.

"Please tell me what's wrong, Brian. If I know the problem, I can help you."

"I miss my ma", he sniffled.

"I know, I know. You must hang on to the things you remember about her. One day you will see her again. But, until then, you must enjoy yourself, focusing on what makes you happy. I'm so proud of your determination, Brian."

Brian continued to cry, and Mika could sense that he wasn't revealing all of his feelings.

"Did something we say make you upset?" she asked.

"No, not what you said. It was Stephen. I thought he was my friend." He said between sobs.

"So did I. He seems like a nice boy. Did he hurt you?"

"In school we did family projects, and he said that he bet I wouldn't have a dad in time for Father's Day. I felt like such a loser since I don't have a ma or a pa."

"Oh, Brian", Mika tried to comfort him. "You have so many people that love you, including me. There's Matthias, Corinne, Surrey, your team. We are all your family. Maybe Stephen is just jealous".

"Jealous of what?"

"Jealous of all the people that love and support you; I didn't see his family in the stands at today's game".

"Ring –" Their heartfelt conversation was interrupted by the telephone. Mika raised and walked toward the receiver.

"Hello?" she said. "Yes, this is she. Oh, hello there. Okay. Oh, he would never do such a thing." There was a long pause. Brian held his breath. "I see. Thank you so much; it won't happen again."

Mika turned to face Brian with an "I'm-disappointed-beyond-belief" look on her face. Brian recognized this, although she had never used it on him before, and hung his head.

"I think you know what that was about, Brian. That was Mrs. Campbell on the line. She informed me that you were not in school today. Are you ill? Please explain yourself."

Too ashamed to answer, Brian buried his face in his pillow. In a calm tone, Mika laid down the law after feeling his forehead.

"Well, young man, you don't seem to have a fever. Until you tell the truth about what you did and go to school all next week, you cannot play baseball. And that's final." Mika quietly closed the door as Brian continued to sob in anger, confusion, and shame.


	5. Chapter 5 - The Turnaround

After a gloomy, rainy Saturday had come and gone, everyone expected Sunday to carry the same type of weather. Everyone was in for a rude awakening in the form of a brilliant, sun-filled Sunday morning. Brian had not come out of his room the day before, mulling things over in his mind. He wanted to tell the truth, but was afraid to be punished even harsher. Desperately wanting to play baseball, Brian achingly thought about being away from his favorite game for an entire week; the thought was too much to bear. All of a sudden, there was a knock at the door.

"Time for church, Brian", Mika called. "Be ready in ten minutes, please".

"Okay, be right there", Brian responded in the most upbeat tone he had used all weekend.

Church began at 9:00 am, but, punctual as she was, Mika insisted on the family arriving at 8:45. The children did not mind very much; these fifteen minutes were about the only peace and quiet that they would see all week. Once seated, Brian looked around at the beautiful interior of the church. Since Easter had passed a few weeks ago, rainbow colored flowers, plants, white candles, and silky bows lined the walls. This was the happiest he had felt since the baseball game on Friday. Brian gazed at his family; Mika, Surrey, Matthias, and Corinne looked so peaceful in their kneeling stance, praying with their hands folded and heads down. He decided to join in and pray with them. In his head, he prayed,

"Dear God, please help me have the courage to admit to Mika what I did. I won't do it again because I like going to school; Mrs. Campbell is nice and so are my friends. I felt bad when Stephen made fun of me, but I love Surrey whether he is my dad or not. Thank you for Matthias and Corinne. They are the best big brother and sister. Amen."

After he had finished his prayer, Brian felt as if a lead weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Throughout the service, all self-pity, anger, and resentment toward Stephen began to melt away. Brian knew God was listening, but at the same time he wondered if things would go back to normal after he left the church building.

When everyone arrived home from church, Brian's newfound strength and courage did not go away. He decided to tell his family the truth now, before he changed his mind. As they were sitting down for breakfast, he blurted out, to whoever was listening,

"I want to tell you what happened on Friday".

"Wonderful, we'd love to hear you", Mika replied matter-of-factly.

"When you dropped me off Friday morning, I didn't go into the school building. I went to the playground and hid until recess. Then I went home, knowing that no one would be there. I stayed there until the end of school. You got home, drove me to the baseball game, and I forgot about it."

Mika believed her son with her whole heart. Sometimes he kept things to himself, but he was not a liar. She was proud of him; at the tender age of eight, he had learned the important lesson that telling the truth is always better than lying and keeping secrets.

"Thank you for telling the truth, Brian", she said sincerely. "But please do not do that again. You could have been hurt."

"You know you can always talk to your family about what's on your mind", Surrey chimed in.

"Okay. I'll try not to lie any more. But what should I tell Stephen tomorrow?"

"Who's this Stephen?" Surrey asked, puzzled. Mika caught him up on everything, wishing she had told him about it earlier. As he listened, a tear almost appeared in the corner of Surrey's eye. He understood the tremendous void of a little boy without a father. Although he did not want to admit that he was ready for marriage, just like Brian had learned, he could not hide the truth any longer. Surrey remembered the diamond ring he had purchased for Mika the previous day. Nervous, but excited, he got down on one knee and said,

"Mika Woods, will you marry me?"

A look of shock and pure happiness spread itself across her face. Matthias and Corinne hugged each other. Brian gasped.

"Yes!" She accepted, bursting into tears.

"Brian, you can tell Stephen that you will have a father very soon. If it's alright with you, Mika, I was thinking May".

"Perfect", she replied, suddenly at a loss for words.


	6. Chapter 6 - The Return

On Monday, Brian entered the doors of Meadows Elementary with the most confidence he had ever possessed. He waved to a few of his friends before he reached room 101, Mrs. Campbell's classroom. Before he could even sit down, his friend Nate stopped him.

"Brian! I was scared that your mom might be sick. Ever since my parents died, I always think that! Is everybody okay?"

"Yeah, everyone is fine", Brian said, a little stunned.

Nate smiled big and hugged his buddy. The rest of the class laughed, but neither boy minded. Brian felt that God was speaking to him through Nate; a true friend who had a broken family himself, yet was still so concerned about Brian's well being.

"Thank you", he prayed in his head.

This whole ordeal had taught Brian that he had a lot to be thankful for, especially his family. But there was one more thing that needed to be taken care of. Brian boldly walked up to Stephen.

"Would you like to attend my mother's wedding? It's on May 20," he said in an adult like tone.

Stephen just sat there, dumbfounded, as Brian took his seat, excited to be back in the classroom.


	7. Epilogue

Five weeks later:

"Do you, Adrian Surrey, take Mika Woods to be your wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do you part?" the Reverend said.

"I do", he said anxiously. The moment of truth was almost here.

"Do you, Mika Woods, take Adrian Surrey to be your husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do you part?"

"I do", she said.

The crowd went wild, and Brian ended the ceremony by shouting a hearty, "AMEN!"


End file.
